Semi-weekly south Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1883-1889, 1887-06-10
Kentuoky's Finances


rug Itlcnt puDliSNtu III inc SOuiiCt
Journal of Monday conveys about a
faint an idea of the speech as sink
hole does of the vast and awful gran
deur of tho Mammoth Cave.
We do not propose, at this time, L
take him up lie after lie and FOLLOW
him from beginning TO end. Tha
would be as impossible as the task o
Slsyphus; as endless a job as the un
tying of the Gordian knot. But W.
do propose to show up his base anC
deliberate Misrepresentation of thI
democracy of Kentucky In their man
agement of the financial affairs of thu
state. And now TO the work:
lie began this line of his brazen ag.
gregation of falsehoods by stating
that at the beginning ofthe war Ken
lucky owed not dollar of debt, had
money in her treasury, and an over
flowing sinking fund. What is the
truth? On pages ATS 70, report OF
1850, we fluid statement showing the
amount of state debt, as follows
Original issue, 2G,2j5,S32 03, of thi'
amount 81, ,525, 900 was redeemed dur
ing the year, leaving balance Of A,'
730,S32 03 Thus we learn that In
stead of the state not owing dollar IN
the world, her Indebtedness amounts
to nearly five millions of dollars
Again, he asserted that the resources
of the sinking fuud-turnpikc, rail-
road and slack-water navigation stock
--baoughtin in an annual revenue oI
something like $S00,000 10 the state
What do the books show !? This Thai
the Kentucky river navigation
which Mr.. Bradley roundly denouncei
the democratic administration for Civ,
ing away TO the federal government
without valuable consideration there
for-paid into the state treasury dur
ing the year 1860 The magnificent sum
of $7Sl IL. During the same period
the expense of keeping the locks aud
dams in repair amounted 10 $ll ,0UC
81. Va
The Green and Barren river nayi-
CATION paid into the treasury from
February, 1860, 10 January, 1861
$T72,l0 The expenses of keeping
the locks aud dams in repair during
the same period footed up $ll,37l 0S
Or nil the millions Of dollars ol
turnpike stock owned by the state, but
one, a turnpike in Anderson county
paid In anything, and that only 5 II
The money realized from the redemp.
ton of forfeited lands aud escheats is
also one of the resources of the sink
ing fund, and from the source, during
1850, the state realized $50. Now
let's sec what was the actual income
from the $3.50, ,374 90 owned by the
state in turnpikes, Waterways and
dirt-roads-for, bless you. the dear old
commonwealth had been fooled by The
wings into taking stock TO the amount
of $l6S, ,7S3 SO IN dirt road from
Owingsville to the Big Sandy river
Here goes:
Frm Kentucky River Navigation ... y7sl i
From Green and barren River Navi-
From, sS,,9n srnrnnlto s,ocL: %
From sales OF Forfeited Lands .... 80. 90 o.
Total m .......... $i,0O0.sy
From this deduct the expenses oi
repairs on the Kentucky, Green and
Barren rivers, 500, 1882, and where
did the state treasury fluid itself on the
10Th day Of October, 1860? Just
$50, 1888 out of pocket.
But then the state owned some bank
aud railroad stock. Let's see how
much was realized from that source
From dividends on state stock ~
Northern Bank of Kentucky, $3l 900
from same in Bank of Kentucky, $93
900; from samei Bank of Louisville
81, ,030 same from Southern Band o.
kentucky, $4,000. Making a tota
of $lS7.920. The railroad stock pait
as follows: Lexington and Frankfor
railroad dividens on state stock, $l5,
2i5.
Thus we have grand total Of re
celpts from the stock owned by thu
state in turnpikes, waterways, rail
roads and banks, of $30i,775 80. o
this amount the $5,00000G-to put !
in round numbers--of turnpikes ant
waterways contributed just 81 $50 33
And yet Mr.. Bradley says the demo
crats, since the war, have thrown anC
given away this remunerative sourc
of revenue that annually turned int
the state treasury $S00000l Verify
Joe Mulbattan must look to his laurel
for a greater liar than he has arisen II
theland. This was all before the war
since which time the Northern Banl
and Bank of kentucky have dwindleC
to the proportions of exchange AM
deposit banks, and the Southern Bank
Bank of the c Commonwealth, Farmer
Bank and Bank of Ashland have al
passed out of existence.
In 1865, at the close of the war, W
find the state debt (see pages 155, l5f
I57 and l5S, auditors report for tina
year, is $5,254,346 so. Turning /
the table of frevenue (page 30 we mis-
the $34,l79,246 of slave property
from which the state formerly obtain
ed revenue of $l3,67l, 69S 40. Mi
Bradley makes no mention of the ex
Linction of this source of revenue TO
tho very obvious reason that 1t woul'
puncture and collapse his arraignmen
of the democracy for extravaganza a
the thrust of an awl would collapse a
inflated bladder.
Turning TO the auditors report 70
1867, the year the control of the stat
government returned to the hands {
the democracy, we find (see page 50Z
that the state debt is quoted at 81
OIL ,199 46. II win thus be seen ths
in no year, before, during or after th
war, was the state free from debt, a
falsely asserted by Mr.. Bradley tina
instead of the state retrograding III
der democratic rule il has steadily &C
yanced in wealth; that the growth ]
values of properties has more tha
compensated for the loss of nearl
$35 900, 600 slave property; that II
stead of the democratic administrt
tions running the state and peopl
deeper in debt 1t has reduced the (
tai debt from $4,6ll, ,l99 46 IN 1856
when Rramlette and republicanisl
were remanded to the rear and u
democracy invited to the front by Il
Ipeople, TO $l,l04,0O0, the figure
/ stands at to-day.
| The great length Of this article TO
bids further comment at this tim
| We shall pay our respects TO NJ
Bradley with great frequency duriI
- H.. =. s,,pofott, aud IN an ha